Bash script not working properly when run automatically

Question

I have a script that sets my proxy automatically depending upon the connection and so its placed in /etc/network/if-up.d/ folder. I set the proxy using gsettings tool and then I want to show a notification on the desktop.

I use notify OSD as follows:

notify-send -u 'critical' -i /home/vivek/Downloads/proxy.ico 'SetProxy Status' 'proxy set to auto'

The script runs fine because i tried to print some log messages into a file which suggest that the script is being run, But i do not see any visible changes when i check my proxy settings, System Settings->Network Proxy, I see that the proxy is unchanged although it has changed actually[I checked the browser and the proxy settings were applied], Also I see no notification.

Amazingly if i run the script explicitly as follows:

cd /etc/network/if-up.d/
sudo ./setproxy

I see the notification at once and also the changes are reflected in Network Proxy settings. Why does this happen? How can I fix this? I am on a ubuntu 12.04 system.

Answer 1

Anything not in your home folder needs root permission to execute for sake of security in case of multi-user systems. Place the proxy settings script in the home folder inside a special folder, say ~/commands. Add this line PATH=$PATH:~/commands in .bashrc

echo 'PATH=$PATH:~/commands' >> .bashrc

Now, every time you run setproxy like any other command, like ls or date, proxy will be set. Just add sudo inside the script to avoid permission clashing.

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Alternatively 1 :

This forum explains about Upstart which is quite simple to use.

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Alternatively 2 :

Just enable root account on your system and always use that.
Warning : This is dangerous for the system in case you are not familiar with the system functioning, you tend to make silly or sloppy mistakes or for some reason are distracted and unknowingly make a mistake.

Answer 2

I would suggest just adding the script to /etc/bash_completion which should get used every time you open a terminal as it is contained at the end of ~/.bashrc. Alternatively you can add the script to the end of ~.bashrc directly. If you choose to add it to bash_completion it should contain the line

. /etc/network/if-up.d/setproxy

and you should check ~./bashrc to make sure that bash_completion is used (it is at the end of the file). The end of my ~./bashrc looks like

# enable programmable completion features (you don't need to enable
# this, if it's already enabled in /etc/bash.bashrc and /etc/profile
# sources /etc/bash.bashrc).
if [ -f /etc/bash_completion ] && ! shopt -oq posix; then
. /etc/bash_completion
fi

Just so you can make sure bash_completion is not commented out.